"So, sorry to burst your
bubble, but winning the conference tournament is NOT their only hope."

What you're not considering is caliber of opponent byu plays
against overall w/in wcc [#10 ranked conf = Weak-Sauce!] Even while winning
more than they've lost during conf play, byu's rpi continues its
predictable descent....Further compounding it, they're losing regularly to
these primarily bottom-feeders constituting wcc, one by double-digits. Lol

Another source to reference would be BPI Rankings, wherein byu currently
#57/squarely outside of The Tourney.

The fact they luckily
successfully begged these various schools to have them on their schedule
certainly enhanced rpi, yet only beat Stanford/Texas early in Games 2/6 and lost
to all others/2 by dbldigits....ST/UT significantly improved since then/byu
significantly worse--Fact!

Fact check: since losing to Utah, BYU has
suffered two (yes, that's two) double digit loss. Those were on Saturday
at Gonzaga (15 points) and at LMU on December 28 (11 points). Their other three
losses include deficits of 4 points, 6 points, and 4 points. But, hey,
don't let facts get in the way of your hatred.

Fact: before
losing their first two conference games on the road, BYU was considered a
Tournament team. After losing those two games, they were considered to be among
the first teams out. After going on a 5 game winning streak, they were once
again considered to be "IN". And after losing their last two games on
the road, Joe Lunardi includes them in his group of "first 4 out".

It is still not out of the question for BYU to make the Tournament as a
bubble team. Go on another 5 game winning streak and you'll see them back
in the bracket predictions.

So, sorry to burst your bubble, but
winning the conference tournament is NOT their only hope.

RonBergundySANDY, UT

Jan. 29, 2014 11:36 p.m.

@AZUTE

Essentially year 2 for "do not disrespect the real Coach K
by calling this Ute guy coach K" Coach Krystowiak?? So his first year
didn't count? He wasn't getting paid?

Once "not coach
k" Krystowiak takes his teams to the Sweet 16 and has a winning percentage
that is top 6 in the NATION since his first season as coach (which by my
estimation he will have to go 46-0 each of the next 3 seasons to accomplish,
which might be possible against the Montana st's and Sacramento
st's.....wait didn't you lose to a team like that).....once he's
done that, you can then compare these 2 coaches.

AZUTE1Mesa, AZ

Jan. 29, 2014 10:53 p.m.

byu was lucky to play teams such as Stanford/Texas at this season's
onset....Coach K exposed them for what they really are as he made rose look like
a graduate assistant, our whooping of them was so unequivocally thorough!

Since then, they've continued getting regularly curb-stomped by
double-digits and have racked-up multiple terrible losses, while playing in the
#10 ranked toughest conference.

The PAC-12 ranks #3 toughest/Proving
how overall/top-to-bottom difficult it is to navigate one's conference
schedule.

rose has assembled some talent/had other talent
voluntarily handed to him, yet has maxed-out his potential down
there....It's one thing for such talent headed to playing under Coach
K's tutelage and quite another to play under "home/regular season
guru" rose....Fine offensive-HC/person, but lacks skills to make even 1 deep
Tourney-run, only once to a Sweet-16 to date!

motorbikeCottonwood Heights, UT

Jan. 29, 2014 5:31 p.m.

Sports Are Great

"So no predictions from anyone that Utah could
win their conference tournament?"

There probably would be if they
played in the WCC.

Sports Are GreatSalt Lake City, UT

Jan. 29, 2014 5:07 p.m.

So no predictions from anyone that Utah could win their conference tournament?

Shaking my head at all the BYU fans who completely missed the point of this
article. It's not saying that BYU is a bubble team - it's saying that
BYU could keep a bubble team out if they get lucky and win their (very weak)
conference tournament.

This is basically a list of mediocre teams in
mediocre conferences...and BYU tops the list. Good job guys!

souptwinsLindon, UT

Jan. 29, 2014 2:33 p.m.

Seeing this picture of Mika in the googles reminded me of how he was playing at
that point in the season. Of course, that was before the hip injury but I'm
still wondering if he can wear the googles again. Maybe it will remind him of
how he was playing then too. Worth a try!

motorbikeCottonwood Heights, UT

Jan. 29, 2014 1:57 p.m.

NevadaCoug

"Meanwhile, BYU still has a chance of drawing an at
large bid because, oh, I don't know, they actually played a D-1 schedule
and were able to win a game away from home?"

You may want to
re-read the article. SI isn't saying BYU has an at-large chance of getting
in. They're only saying that should Gonzaga get upset by another team in
the WCC tournament, BYU would then have a shot at getting the automatic bid that
comes with winning the conference tournament.

In other words, the WCC
is not very good.

BeSmartCheyenne, WY

Jan. 29, 2014 1:48 p.m.

sorry just like every other college team in Utah

BeSmartCheyenne, WY

Jan. 29, 2014 1:42 p.m.

BYU will probably have to win their tournament to make it.Just like every
other college team.Utah Valley University may be the flag bearer this year
for the big dance.

nhatch82Eagle Mountain, UT

Jan. 29, 2014 1:06 p.m.

@ Chris B

Interesting comments coming from a team that is currently
9th in the PAC 10.5, and don't even try to bring up how difficult your
schedule is. Utah's strength of schedule is 163. Byu's? 21.
Utah's RPI? 118 BYU's? 50. The only team with a worse RPI in the Pac
12 is Washington St. Good effort Christy

NevadaCougOverton, NV

Jan. 29, 2014 1:05 p.m.

What was essentially true at the beginning of the season is still true:
Utah's only hope of making the NCAA Tournament is to win the Pac-12
tournament.

Meanwhile, BYU still has a chance of drawing an at large
bid because, oh, I don't know, they actually played a D-1 schedule and were
able to win a game away from home?

Chris BSalt Lake City, UT

Jan. 29, 2014 12:43 p.m.

What was essentially guaranteed a month into the season(per byu fans) has now
faded to hardly a shred of hope. Dave Rose has done very poorly in conference
tournaments, winning very few compared to his regular season records. And
Gonzaga owns byu. So unless Gonzaga changes conferences mid-season, as well as
Lola Mary community, Pepperdine, and Portland nursing school, the conference
tournament doesn't look good for byu.